Carpet Cleaning and Restoration Blog

A water damaged carpet is one of the most pathetic things that one might need to deal with in their life. Spilled wine or juice and a flooded carpet are two entirely different things to manage. Thou if you are having some water damage in your Missoula home, we would recommend you to hire professional water damage restoration services to treat your product and property with safety and ensuring minimum damage to them.

Here we have come to discuss and clarify some difference related to water damage carpet and rug cleaning and maintenance services in your home. These chunks of information along with the tips will help you deal with the problem in an effective way.​Steam or Dry Cleaning:Winters are always the season of leaking roofs and muddy foot that are sure to leave dirt and stains everywhere, on the floor and carpets. According to the experts, if you are properly maintaining your carpets, it will you retain their original condition and stay with you for a really long time. Apart from the long life of the carpet, it will also help you manage the quality of atmosphere at your home.

Keeping this importance in mind, the expert suggests professional cleaning services once a year, apart from weekly spot cleaning and vacuuming. The professional carpet cleaning industry carries two main procedures to deal with the carpet cleaning, rug cleaning and water restoration related services, hereby named as; dry cleaning and steam cleaning.

What is Steam Cleaning?The steam cleaning process is also named as hot water extraction process. This method is executed by forcing hot water in your carpet with the help of high-pressure jet spray. the spray is then followed by the vacuuming that takes the water out of the carpet. Typically, this activity is performed by using the portable machine.

The steam cleaning process starts by vacuuming out all the dirt and dust from the depth of carpet. The steam cleaning experts will also remove the spots or stains on your carpet or rug and then use a pre-spray chemical that helps to soften the surface of the carpet. The soften surface is then treated with the hot water spray that goes deep into the carpet fibres and helps to have a deep cleaning of the carpet.

The drying time for the carpet varies from 6 to 8 hours, depending on the type of carpet. If your carpet has not dried in 24 hours, you cleaning expert has not extracted enough water from the carpet, during the cleaning process.

What is Dry Cleaning?Do not go for the name, this kind of carpet cleaning is also processed with some amount of water but this amount of water is less than what is used in steam cleaning.

In this process, the technical will vacuum your carpet and remove all the dirt or dust from it. A chemical mixture for dry cleaning is then applied to the carpet. This mixture is made to break the carpet fibres and release the residues built into the carpet. This breakdown helps to extract the dirt and soil that lay deep into the carpet.

This process is implemented by using machines fixed with the rotating pad. This pad spin fasts on the carpet and absorbs all the dirt in it. These pads are constructed with highly absorbent cotton that is soaked in the conditioning solution in hot water mixture. This mixture dip pads are changed throughout the process and they get soiled with the dirt particles extracted.

Benefits of Steam and Dry Cleaning: Both steam and dry cleaning comes with different benefits. However, they both are significant means of carpet cleaning but are preferred based on different elements and circumstances.

The dry cleaning system leaves the carpet clean immediately and you can start using it soon after cleaning. The carpet cleaned in this way becomes completely dry without 2 hours of cleaning. Such type of cleaning is thus appreciable for high traffic area.

Most of the carpet manufacturers recommend to you steam cleaning for maintaining a really long and healthy life of the carpet.

Thus we can say that dry cleaning is a good option for general cleaning of the carpet as it is effective and quick. However, dry cleaning is superficial cleaning of the carpet. But if you are really willing for a longer life of your carpet you need to consider the deep cleaning of the carpet and you must go for a steam cleaning.

Spills on the CarpetsThere are possibilities that you will see some hidden and long forgotten stains on the carpet, after cleaning. These stains are normally caused by the liquid that contains colourless sugar. Due to long exposure to the air, the insoluble brown stain goes strictly on the carpet fibre. Sometimes these stains may appear in brown shades but most of the time they remain unnoticed as they get covered with the soil on them.

As the fibres have the characteristic that causes the water to evaporate but the colour remains there. If you are trying to remove the colour stain by using wrong mixtures and chemicals, you may end up making the stain even more noticeable.

So if you are willing to decrease the possibilities of damage to the carpet or stains, you must take an immediate actions including; absorbing all the moisture, and putting some thick layer of absorbent material over the spill area and pressing it down. When you are done with these initials you must call a profession cleaner to remove the spots safely and keep your carpet safe before the stain gets permanent and leave a mark on you.

Water Stains on Carpet: Water or snow tracked in, spills, rain through open doors or windows, leakage of radiators, bursting of pipes and in the worse scenario, the flood, the base yarns of the carpet get serious damage.

The situations get critical when you give too much time to their carpets to get dry and it leads to the weakening the fibres of the carpet, losing its colour and life. This entire situation will lead to water stains that are mostly brown in colour.

Once these stains are developed and the brown colour is formed on the carpet, it becomes impossible, even for the expert professionals, to deal with it and restore the actual state of your carpet. For this reason, if your carpet ever encounters any such incident, consult a water damage restoration expert in Missoula, immediately.

These experts will not only remove the dirt and dust lying deep into the carpet but will also have the water extracted out from the carpet, completely. The professional carpet cleaning comes with the authentic and tested chemical mixtures based on the type of carpet you are using and what kind and frequency of damage have occurred to it.

These professionals will assess the quality and type of carpet and will then decide the type and amount of cleaning material to deal with your water stain issues.

In a nutshell, thou, you need to be concerned about the scheduled and periodic cleaning of your carpet on your own you must consider the professional carpet cleaning services once in a year. These professional tips and services are a must and play a vital role in cleaning your carpet, helping it live long with maintained colours, and keeping your surrounding healthier for you and your loved one.

Water damage restoration experts say that the best step to start working on water damage at a residence is to make the owners of the place act fast and deal with the damage until water damage restoration agents come and deal with the damages professionally. Water damages can lead to serious complications; that is why water damage restoration experts advise people to follow the following tips.

1. After a Flood:

Follow the following steps after a flood.• If the cause of the flood is a burst pipe or a failure of water heater, turn off the main water line for your residence. Call water damage restoration services as soon as possible. • Shut down the power by cutting off the electricity and gas from their main sources. It is essential whether the leak is small or large to do this step as all it takes is one drop to cause a disaster. It is better to have an electrician to handle shutting off in case you have standing water.• You need to assess the damage in order to know how much money you will pay for the water damage restoration service. Take some pictures for the insurance company.• Save your most valuable possessions and remove any valuable items. Don’t waste time cleaning anything; just rescue everything first.

2. Get Rid of Standing Water:

When the water sits for a long time, the damages will be disastrous. Here are some tips that you should follow in order to get rid of any standing water.• When everything is safe, start pumping out any standing water.• When you deal with a natural flood, wait until the water of the flood have receded below your place. • You need to wear protective gear while working in your flooded house. Wear rubber boots, gloves, and a mask or respirator.• You need to keep your kids and pets away from the standing water. Any standing water is contaminated and may be harmful to your kids and pets.• The place of the pump should be at the lowest spot of the area affected by the flooded water.• The usage of a wet-dry vacuum is the best solution for small amount of flooding.

3. Mold and Mildew:

Mold need water damage restoration services experts to deal with it. You need to assess mold for your insurance company and to help the water damage restoration agents. Follow the following steps.• Mold can grow anywhere. It can be visible and it can grow in air ducts, between walls, rafters, and crawl spaces.• If mold is not visible, find any noticeable must earth smell. If there is any, then there is invisible mold undetected.• Mildew and mold develop within 48 hours after exposure to moisture.• Turn off the power as mold will make any wires or cables wet which is extremely dangerous.• Dry the area out before mold spreads to other areas and becomes hard to remove by water damage restoration agents. When mold stays for long time, it will invade more areas and become uncontrollable.• Don’t use fans to dry out the place as they may spread the spores of the mold to new places.

Water damage restoration services offer their customers informative guides to help them deal with any kind of water damage in their houses. The best water damage restoration services will provide you with information in situations like home leaks, mold control, how to deal with water damage until water damage restoration experts arrive and other situations. These tips will be provided to you by any water damage restoration agent regarding how to deal with leaks in order to save your residence and reduce the costs of repairing your place. Let’s see what experts say.

1. Hot Water Tanks:

You need to check the pressure relief valve of the tank of hot water regularly because sometimes they are plumbed into a drain. They may be leaking while you have no idea. You will know that they are leaking when you are not able to remove the drain pipe in order to check for a leak. You will listen for a hissing sound when the valves are leaking.

2. Toilets:

These steps will show you how to check your toilet for a leak.• Remove the top off the tank and listen as close as you can. If you heard any hissing, try to locate its source.• After locating the source of the leak, assess it and determine whether you can fix it or not. If you are not able to fix it, call water damage restoration services and have an expert to deal with the problem professionally.• If you didn’t notice anything, put some food coloring with a couple of drops in the tank and wait about 5 minutes. If there is coloring in the bowl, then there is a leak in the flapper at the tank’s bottom. This leak is allowing water to seep through. Decide whether you can fix it by yourself or you need a water damage restoration expert.• Repeat if you have more toilets.

3. Meter Line:

Here is how to check your line that is running from the meter to your place if there is no leak in toilets.• If you have a shut-off valve, turn it off temporarily until you complete your check.• Check the meter. Remove the lid and watch the dial on meter’s top.• If there is any dirt or grass covering the top of the meter, dig around until you can see the meter head clearly. The valve is turned off so if there is any leak, it is between the house and the meter unless you have a leaking valve which is very common too.• To locate the area of the leak, walk the distance between the meter and the valve until you find a sign of leak.• The signs of leak are such as soft muddy area or grass greener than the rest or growing faster.

4. General tips:

• Check your garden by looking at hoses, drip irrigation systems and taps. • If you have a swimming pool, call a water damage restoration services to check it for leaks.• Check your shower for leaks; it is a common area for leaks.

If you have a water stain on your carpet and you are not sure how to deal with it or which carpet cleaner you should use. If you left water stains within your carpet, mildew will grow and damage it. This guide will tell you how to avoid these damages so let’s know how to use the proper carper cleaner to remove water stains.

1. The Usage of Soap and Water as a Carpet Cleaner:Here is how to use soap and water to clean water stains.• Blot up as much moisture as you can by using a clean white cloth and pressing it against the water stain; this will work only when the spill is fresh.• Walk over the cloth to make it absorb more water.• Paper towels are great too. Place some of them over the stain then put a heavy object over the towels and leave everything for a while.• The first step that you should do is to remove any sediment or dirt that has embedded into the carpet in the water stain area by creating a mixture of soap and water.• Take a cloth, cover it with soap and water, rub it on the stain gently; that is how you dab the area with the stain.

2. The Usage of Vinegar and Water as a Carpet Cleaner: Here is how to use vinegar and water to clean water stains.• After the usage of your dish soap and water to remove any dirt or sediment, if the water stain is still there, you can try the mixture of vinegar and water.• Use white vinegar. Add ¼ teaspoon of white vinegar for every 32 ounces of water as you don’t need much vinegar.• You can use a clean cloth or a hand-held sprayer to apply the mixture of vinegar and water into the carpet.• Press lightly on the stain to let the PH of the vinegar remove the water stain properly.• Leave the carpet to dry out as you will see the effects only when the carpet is fully dry.• While the carpet is drying out, you will see the stain gradually disappear.• Repeat if needed.

3. The Usage of Chemicals as Carpet Cleaners: Here is how you can use chemicals as carpet cleaners.• At this point, you may need to call professional help. They will deal with everything professionally and getting your carpet clean again especially if the damage is severe.• If the carpet cleaning agents said that the carpet needs to be replaced, make sure that nothing will help.• Rent a steam cleaner and use it. Steam cleaners are effective against water stains.• Use Ammonia and hot water within the steam cleaner. This combination as a steam carpet cleaner is so effective. • If nothing worked, buy a commercial carpet cleaner from the store and use it. Search for the most perfect commercial carpet cleaner that will get your carpet clean. Search also for a guide to use it properly.

Water damage restoration accidents can be very serious especially if it is combined with contamination which leads to serious health and environmental problems. Water is one of the essential elements for the survival of all creatures on Earth so we need to take water damage accidents especially those related to contamination seriously. Let’s see the most serious water damage restoration accidents through history.

1. U.S. Marine Corps Base Camp Lejeune: We can sum up what happened in the following points.

• The contamination that happened in this camp lasted for about 30 from 1952 to 1987. The number of people that were affected by this accident is estimated by about 500,000.• The chemicals that were found in the water affected the people with fatal diseases such as cancer (nearly all types of cancer), reproductive disorders, birth defects, and many rare conditions.• The symptoms appeared after a while. The families and residents of the camp consumed the water as normal; the water that contains chemicals and carcinogens.• There are some methods to get this water clean like Air Stripping and the evaporation of TCE and Volatile Organic Compounds.• There are some lawsuits and claims against the camp that should be taken seriously.

2. Woburn Massachusetts Water Contamination:We can sum up what happened in the following points.

• Adell K. Heneghan at the University of Idaho made a case study that showed that the water of Woburn Massachusetts was contaminated for about 10 years from 1969 to 1979.• The diseases that affected the people there were fatal. There were 12 cases of children affected by leukaemia. The people of the area at the height of the contamination suffered from liver, kidney, prostate, and urinary cancers. Congenital anomalies and birth defects were common too. • The chemicals that present in the water are PCE, TCE, Chloroform, 1, 2 Dichloroethene and Arsenic. To get the water clean, the recommended methods are GAC and Air Stripping.

3. Hinckley Water Contamination: Another example of contamination as a water damage restoration disaster is Hinckley Water Contamination. From 1952 to 1956, many people were reported to fall sick after being exposed to the contaminated water.

The chemicals were very nasty and people complained of nearly all types of cancers and birth problems. The pollution was made by dropping hexavalent chromium or Chromium-6 in addition to the Pacific Gas and Electric (PG&E). After the examination of the water, the PBS found that the best effective way to get this water clean is to us an ion exchange treatment unit especially to get rid of Chromium-6.

4. Yamuna India:This is one of the most terrifying situations on our planet. The river that is considered one of the most polluted rivers in the world is still used by the Indian people and it supplies about 70% of New Delhi’s water. Most of the filtering methods are useless so the people use the water in order to survive.

These 4 water damage restoration accidents will change your view about water damage. You will consider contamination as a source of water damage restoration too which is kind of one of the most serious situations on Earth.

In order to understand water damage restoration well, you need to understand its definition, categories, classes and restoration. It is one of the essential industries nowadays as it may cause severe damages that cost millions of dollars. Let’s start with the definition of water damage restoration and go through the rest of all the details.

• The definition of water damage restoration: Water damage restoration is defined as the losses that result from water; it may reach millions of dollars. The damages don’t just result from water but they also result from rotting of wood, rusting of steel and many other forms of damages.

• Categories:

There are three categories of water damage:

1. Category 1:This category includes the sources of water that do not have any threats to humans which are known as sources of clean water. Examples of these sources are the water supply lines when they break, a tub or sink when they overflow, and the malfunctions of appliance that also include the lines of water supply.

2. Category 2:This category includes the sources of water that have a degree of contaminants that can be chemical, physical or biological. This water is known as the grey water and it causes sickness or discomfort when living creatures consume or expose themselves to it as it has harmful micro-organisms and the nutrients that are consumed by these micro-organisms.

3. Category 3:This category includes unsanitary agents, harmful bacteria and fungi which cause severe discomfort or sickness which is known as black water.

• What is the difference between Category 2 and Category 3?

1. Category 2: This includes the water that is not properly removed from buildings and still not stagnant.

2. Category 3:This includes the black water in addition to the stagnant water of the second category.

• Classes:How can you determine the class of water damage? Well, this is determined by the evaporation rate which is based on the types of the affected materials, the wetness, and whether the water is in a room or an open space. Restoration services consider damage class determination as the first step to be able to repair the damages well.

1. Class 1: • Slow evaporation rate.• Water affects only a part of a room• Materials have a low porosity and a little moisture is absorbed by them.

2. Class 2:• Fast evaporation rate.• Water affects the whole room, carpet and furniture.• Water reaches the walls, but less than 24 inches.

The restoration process varies from simple to complex according to the severity of water damage so categories and classes are essential and help the restoration agents to repair everything properly. Find out the best water damage restoration service that use the best equipment and know what exactly how to deal with your specific situation. It is better if you asked for recommendations from people who passed through what you are experiencing.